WSP08562

• File Number: 8149.700
• Description: Miscellaneous Small Projects and Project Studies - Homestake Project
• State: CO
• Basin: Arkansas
• Water Division: 2
• Date: 5/16/1983
• Author: USDA Forest Service
• Title: Record of Decision for Homestake Phase II Project Final Environmental Impact Statement
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: EIS

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Record of Deci s i on COLORADO W
for CO~S{:'R I flYER
HOMESTAKE PHASE II PROJECT "~ \ATlON 130",R9
Fina 1 Envi ronmenta 1 Impact Statement';

Rocky Mountain Region
White River National Forest
USDA Forest Service
Eagle County, Colorado

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I. INTRODUCTION

This Record of Decision documents the decisions reached by the Forest
Service regarding the application for land use made by the Cities of
Colorado Springs and Aurora concerning the Homestake Phase II Project.
The regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (40
CFR 1500-1508) require that each Federal agency, having a decision to
make, prepare a concise public Record of Decision at the time of the
decision. This is that required Record and it is limited to the author-
ity and jurisdiction of the Forest Service and, therefore, applies only
to activities on National Forest System lands (FEIS Section 1.2, pages 1-4
to 1-8). It ~lso describes the alternatives considered, documents the con-
ditions and stipulations that are associated with the decisions, summar-
izes the coordination with other governmental agencies, and describes
public involvement that took place.

On June 19, 1981, a revised Environmental Impact Report was submitted by
the Cities to the White River National Forest with preliminary plans to
apply for an easement to construct the second phase of a water collection
system on National Forest System (NFS) land. The plans proposed develop-
ments which were substantially different from the system outlined in the
1960 easement granted by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and assigned
to the Cities of Aurora and Colorado Springs on July 31, 1962. The Forest
Service subsequently informed the Cities that the proposal could not be
approved until an Environmental Assessment was completed (FEIS Section 1.1,
page 1-4). Subsequently, on August 18, 1981, the Forest Service and the
Cities signed a Memorandum of Understanding to study the proposal. On
December 30,1981, the Forest Service filed a Notice of Intent to Prepare
an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The Notice was published in the
Federal Register on January 7, 1982 (FEIS Section 6.1.6, pages 6-1 to 6-5).

The Forest Service, as lead agency, has the primary responsibility for
preparing the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The cooperating
agencies listed in Exhibit 1 and other Federal, State, and local agencies,
organizations, and individuals contributed to the Final Environmental
Impact Statement (FEIS). The FEIS is a document disclosin9 the environ-
mental consequences of implementation of the proposed action and alter-
natives to the proposed action. It is an important document for Federal,
State, and local governments to use in arriving at their individual deci-
sions regarding the proposed action and the alternatives to it (FEIS
Section 1.2, page 1-7).

8149.700